As the in-principle approval for Posco India’s multi-product Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project near Paradip lapsed on Thursday, the company has sought no-objection from the State Government for extension of the time period by one year.
In a letter to the Principal Secretary of the Industries Department, general manager of Posco-India Hak Soo Kim requested him to forward the no-objection at the earliest in support of the extension request to the Centre so that the
SEZ Board of Approval can consider the case at its next meeting.
The project requires 4,004 acres of land for setting up the steel plant. In stage I of the project, an eight million tonne steel plant will be set up on 2,700 acres of land. In the stage-II, a four million tonne steel plant will be set up on 1,304 acres of land.
Industries Department has asked the Steel and Mines Department and the authorities of the State owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation of Odisha (IDCO) to immediately give their views on the request of the South Korean steel major.
Seeking extension of its in-principle approval till October 2014, Kim said the company was not able to submit required documents for the formal approval as it has not been handed over the total land.
He said the State Government has so far handed over physical possession of 1,704 acres while the company expects to get 1,000 acres more soon.
Kim, however, said the land is not free of encroachment. The process of removing the encroachment and disbursing the compensation is still on, he said and added that the land demarcation process is being carried out by the authorities concerned and the leasing process is underway. Since all these activities are still going on, the required documents for the formal approval are not ready as of now.
“We expect that these activities will take at least three to five months,” Kim said requesting the Government to forward the no-objection as early as possible.
Posco’s multi-product specific SEZ was proposed over 4,004 acres of land in which the company, as the developer, would invest ` 3,023 crore. The SEZ project proposed to produce 6,348,000 tonnes of finished steel product per year. The project would provide employment to 48,000 people including 18,000 direct employment, sources said.
Source : newindianexpress.com